Theo of Golden - Allen Levi --------------------- 3 Stars

People love Theo of Golden. I've been hearing about how much people enjoy it for over a year since it came out. It has an impressive 4.7 star rating on Amazon and 4.41 on Goodreads (also strong, considering the platform). While I enjoyed the book too, I just didn't find that it made the same super strong impression on me.

If you are not aware, this is a fictional story about a character named Theo who spends a year in the the charming southern town of Golden. He is mysterious, sweet, old, thoughtful, wise, etc. He truly is a great character. The town is pretty idyllic too, yet he finds ways to improve the lives of many people during his time. 

So, you are probably thinking, what's wrong with this book and why didn't it earn more than 3 stars (which is quite average on this blog)? Well, all fault belongs to me. I can totally see why this book is so well liked and revered by many. It's a great little story and Theo is a great character..... it's also super saccharine to the point that it just felt over the top to me. 

It reminded me a ton of the book A Man Called Ove. Both books are very heartwarming and the main character - Ove/Theo - are the best and most interesting parts of the books. Both have connections to a small community and both, at least to me, don't seem like anything that is remotely close to reality. Here is my crushing review of that book; it earned 1.5 stars. 

And I think that last part is what really got me about this book. Perhaps that is the paradox with this story - it seems both ludicrously unrealistic and wonderfully hopeful. I presume all those people giving it 5 star reviews are doing so because of how wonderful the story feels to them and how optimistic this type of novel sits in our current world. I get all that and appreciate those aspects of the book. I just found it to be one note. And even though the author includes some sad things that helped elevate the happy things, I just couldn't fully buy in to the story and characters. 

While it only earned 3 stars, I do recommend reading it. I think the strong public opinion probably is a better indictor of large scale enjoyment of the book then my middling rating. Again, it's got some great aspects to it and even I finished it and thought it was "cute." Just know that you may be part of the minority of readers who it simply didn't resonate with in the same way.